I don’t know what to do. I had crowns placed on all my teeth close to 14 years ago. One of them started feeling loose. I went to see my dentist. He said I developed decay at the edge of the crown and need to replace it. In fact, he said I need to replace every crown. When I asked if they all had decayed, he said I need to replace them all so they’d match. I just can’t afford that. He said it’s my choice money or teeth which match. What do I do? I feel trapped.

Carolyn

Dear Carolyn,

You have a third option. Find a different dentist. I’m sorry your dentist made you feel trapped. You do have options, but it won’t be with this dentist. Truthfully, I’m being a little hard on him. Only very experienced and skilled cosmetic dentists can match a single porcelain crown. It’s very likely when he says they won’t match if you just replace that one, he’s telling you the truth. If he did the crown, it wouldn’t match.

As I see it, here are your choices:

Choice One: Replace Every Crown at Once with Your Dentist

The benefit to this is that you won’t have to wait for the others to fail, running back and forth to the dentist every time they do. It brings you peace of mind. However, that’s a huge chunk of money. Money not everyone has at one go.

Choice Two: Switch to an Expert Cosmetic Dentist and Replace Only One

If you really only can replace one (and there’s nothing wrong with that), then you’ll have to find a dentist capable of matching them. So, how do you go about finding such a dentist?

Finding a Skilled Cosmetic Dentist

If you go with choice two, my suggestion is you go to the mynewsmile.com website. They have a find a cosmetic dentist link. You input your zip code and how far you’re willing to travel to see one. Then, they’ll list all their recommended dentists in that range.

The best part about this is that they’ve already screened the dentists. They can’t just ask (or even pay) to be listed. Instead, they have to provide evidence of their cosmetic specific training, along with photos of actual cases they’ve done to show they have artistry in addition to their technical knowledge.